Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 8 May 2019
1136. Deputy Jackie Cahill asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine if participants in afforestation schemes under the Forestry Programme 2014-2020 are also eligible to apply for both the basic payment scheme and GLAS for land that is planted. [18484/19]
View answerParticipants in the afforestation scheme are eligible to apply for the basic payment scheme, provided that the afforested land meets the following requirements:
- The land to be afforested was declared on a 2008 SPS application form;
- The applicant who declared that land on a 2008 SPS application form was paid under the 2008 Single Payment Scheme;
- The land to be afforested was eligible to draw down an SPS payment in 2008.
- The afforested land meets all the requirements of the Afforestation Grant and Premium Scheme 2014 -2020.
If the applicant is a new entrant to farming, the minimum area to be retained in an agricultural activity will be fixed by the Department on a case by case basis. Applicants who wish to benefit from the Basic Payment on afforested land must be the person or persons in joint management or in receipt of an afforestation premium. This applies to members of the same family. The afforested land must meet all the requirements of the Afforestation Scheme. Eligible forestry parcels that are declared on BPS applications to activate entitlements will also be subject to cross-compliance requirements.
As GLAS is not a whole farm scheme, afforestation can be carried out on land which is not subject to agri-environment actions under the Scheme.
